For survivors and their loved ones, it’s a well-known fact
that cancer sucks. Just about everyone has experienced the death of a family
member or close friend at the hands of cancer. Some folks handle it better than
others, and often with a lot of help and support. Miss You Already is a comedy (of sorts) about two very close
friends and how they deal with the effects of cancer.

Drew Barrymore stars as Jess, an American who grows up in
London alongside her life-long friend Milly (Toni Collette). The pair
experience all the most important events of youth and into adulthood. Milly
marries Kit (Dominic Cooper) and has two children. Jess moves in with Jago
(Paddy Considine) and tries to conceive a child.

Then, Milly learns she has breast cancer. Jess does all she
can to help her friend through chemotherapy while trying to keep her own
relationship together. MIlly’s mother Miranda (Jacqueline Bisset), a
self-absorbed soap opera actress means well but isn’t much help. Kit also fails
to be completely supportive, especially after Milly undergoes a double
mastectomy. Following the surgery, Kit and Milly drift apart until an affair
threatens to destroy their marriage completely. Jess becomes fed up with Milly’s
antics after she discovers her friend has betrayed her trust. Jess is further
conflicted about telling Milly she’s finally pregnant.

When Milly’s condition worsens, the pair reconciles their
differences and Jess does all she can to patch things up with her best friend, while
helping Milly put her life back together.

Miss You Already
has its charms, including a likeable performance from Barrymore who seemed
destined to star in crappy Adam Sandler movies for the rest of her life. There
are also some funny and poignant moments between Barrymore and Collette,
strengthened by plenty of funny dialogue.

The trouble with Miss
You Already is its tendency to go a little overboard with glib banter in
the face of serious subject matter. It’s sometimes difficult to feel
comfortable laughing as the main characters (especially Collette) exhibit
extreme narcissism in the same ballpark as cancer. It’s like a long version of
the British comedy TV show Absolutely
Fabulous – going overboard on the comedy, which might not always be the best medicine.